Archaeologists have put a timeline on the origins of ancient Egypt. They’ve been digging back in time to understand when this great civilization first became a state ruled by a King. Thanks to radiocarbon dating of excavated hair, bones and plants, they say Egypt’s first ruler—King Aha—came into power around 3100BC. Well, that was an Aha moment. Dating showed that farmers began to settle and work the land around the Nile later than previously thought and that the gap between settlement and the first king was shorter as well.